With an outing scheduled in Bakersfield for Monday, no way I could pass up an opportunity to play one my favorite tracks Sunday Ridge Creek Dinuba which is only an hour away. Got together with 4 GKers on a 2:00pm tee time and had a blast. The golf course was looking as beautiful and lush as I’ve seen it since it opened years ago. Man, just CHECK OUT THE PHOTOS I posted. Place was so green and they are almost finished refurbishing their bunkers (100+ traps). It’s a unique challenging track with a grossly underrated rating/slope that allows you to grip & rip yet pay a heavy price should your shots miss the target. It’s a course you can walk and has outstanding large practice facilities. After play, not many better places to eat in town than 3 Finger Jacks on the property that features a beautiful patio/view of the course. It’s worth a trip from SoCal or NorCal to grab a room in area and play it once or twice.

Highly Recommended

Teed it up with GDR23, ag2000 and kmersola during a Golf Moose / GK Private Event I organized on Monday. Awesome day of golf with GKers and others that joined in.

I’ve lived in Westlake/Thousand Oak area since 2002 and have driven by Sunset Hills CC more times than I can count. I’ve heard stories of how tight and quirky the layout is … this was my first time playing it Monday and like kassper7 I too was pleasantly surprised to experience a fun layout that was not too tight nor quirky for this golfer. In fact I really enjoyed it. It’s a challenging golf course in very good shape despite drought and water restrictions taking place in Ventura County. The greens are near perfect. Fairways had some brown areas but not much with full coverage good berumuda/kikuyu surface to play from. But oh that kikuyu rough greenside really put a premium on good iron play, which if you saw my forum post, has been severely lacking lately for me. The greens are small and well protected not only by the nasty rough but bunkers too. Want to play someone with a good short game … bet the members here have one because you got to have mad pitch game skills to handle this place. On the greens are no picnic either. While small they were very challenging with some severe slopes and undulations. Tee boxes are small as there’s not much space to fit them. With irons off the tee a strong possibility due to the how short and tight the track is some tees showed the wear and tear of summer play. Bunkers on the other hand all had excellent sand, groomed and a pleasure to play from. I’m so glad I finally got to play here!

Regarding facilities, nothing special but adequate. You got your clubhouse, bar/restaurant, tennis courts … unfortunately due to limited space they do NOT have a full size driving range. Instead they have a very small 160 yards irons only range and a nice hitting net where you can take bigger swings. They also got a small practice putting green and chipping green plus practice bunker (bunker was closed).

From an organizer’s perspective, so appreciative they had a full outside services helping out and their head pro, F & B director and staff to make sure we were well cared for. The staging area was small and simple. I enjoyed the whole experience and I’m looking forward to returning to put on more outings there. CHECK OUT the photos I just posted and THANK YOU to everyone that came! Recommened!

Thank you everyone that came out to our GK Plays!
(I just posted the recap in the forums)

When I decided on the date for Sterling Hills Golf Club GK Plays I knew with the most strict water restrictions having been in effect for 2 months prior and Ventura Country getting very little of the monsoon rain other parts of SoCal have received, their playing conditions were not going to be their best, but IMO they were still - Very Good! But lets be honest, besides Sterling Hills Golf Club being a great supporter of our GK Community, the weather in Camarillo in August is about as good as it gets in SoCal and that factored as well. Low 80's light ocean breeze. At least 10 to 15 degrees cooler than nearby San Fernando Valley.

I loved all the improvements to the facilities since my last round their months ago. New more conveinent practice putting green near the driving range/first tee, refurbished 19th Hole Pub/Grill/Patio and new paint. Being a local to Ventura County it's been awesome seeing Sterling Hills Golf Club continue to improve the entire experience over the last few years. They've come a LONG way in that time period and continue to progress.

Our outing ran smoothly with excellent friendly services at all levels.

The facilities are superb for hosting groups large or small.

Highly Recommended.

Such a blast teeing it up at Dove Canyon Golf Club on Monday with rgm2525, mark_6m and kmersola. This was the second time the club hosted a Golf Moose / GK Private Club event and I so appreciate their support. Its a fantastic experience top to bottom. The golf course is a signature Jack Nicklaus design that was in great shape in the heat of the summer. Healthy lush bermunda fairways and bermunda/kikuya rough. Greens suprisingly soft yet smooth and medium fast. Definately a different experience from the smooth, fast and firm greens we played in January. Bunkers all in good shape with quality sand. Some tee boxes were being worked on with some closed and others a little rough around the edges for country club standards but just fine to play from. Check out the updated photos I posted.

I want to give a big thanks to everyone that came out. Its so great to see GKers at these.

Of all the new courses I've experienced this year, Dove Canyon Golf Club is my favorite. Highly recommended!

Second time playing Bear Creek GC (7/25) and running a Golf Moose / Greenskeeper.org outing here. Great job by their staff having everything prepared and organized for us.

Played with rgm2525, mark_6m and sparky14. Golf course was in great shape and much better than when we played it in February. This is a summer turf course for sure as they don’t overseed. Greens in super shape, not as fast and smooth as our February outing but holding shots much better and still rolling well which enhanced their playability/enjoyment. Fairways lush, mostly green bermunda turf which was a pleasure to hit off. Bunkers all had quality sand and well groomed. Tee boxes lush, groomed and played real nice.

I’m a big fan of this layout. Check out the photos. Excellent challenging tee shots with attractive sight lines. Most tee shot and approach shots, as with all Nicklaus designs favor a left to right ball slight. However they can still be played with a draw which I love. Greens are all very well guarded by bunkers and lateral hazards. Once on the greens most have multiple tiers and severe undulations. Excellent green complex designs that reward strong approach shot play, short game and putting skills. Never a boring or dull moment playing this course.

Don’t miss an opportunity to play this exclusive club. Highly Recommended.

I’m in the process of putting together our GK Plays outing recap to be posted in the forums tomorrow. Thank you so much to everyone that attended. Just posted some new photos of the golf course here so please check them out. San Vicente Golf Resort has only got prettier from my last round there back in August 2021.

First off, please read Mark’s review posted just below mine, great work and his description of the layout really nails it.

From a player’s standpoint, I love this track. Especially the 18 new green complexes which came out so good they helped San Vicente Golf Resort win the Renovation of the Year Award 2021 from industry media Golf Inc (New gorgeous large undulating greens well protected by beautiful bunkers and grass knolls). They can tuck pins in many spots on those greens making every approach, pitch and putt fun/interesting.

Conditions of the golf course are excellent. Smooth, medium speed, mostly firm greens. Speaking of the greens, they are much more receptive to golf shots now than 12 months ago. Mostly lush bermunda turf fairways that were established just prior to COVID and now have filled in beautifully. Rough was mostly lush, well groomed/defined and penal at times. Bunkers all in excellent shape with quality sand. Tee boxes in the same shape as the fairways, mostly lush and well groomed. San Vicente Golf Resort is a course with warm weather turf in June – October you can expect its best conditions.

From an organizer's perspective, even though our outing was small they delivered on all accounts especially with their BBQ, Drinks and Tent. Mark the head pro was out there talking it up with our guests and serving burgers, hot dogs, beers and drinks. They made us feel very comfortable and appreciated.

I highly recommend playing San Vicente Golf Resort this Summer or Fall. It’s worth the drive. Enjoy!

Catching up on this review. Please check out the outing recap in the forums at the following link: https://www.greenskeeper.org/forums/discussions.cfm?forumid=97&topicid=102429

Such a great time and experience at Olivas Links as expected. It was in the 90s in Thousand Oaks and even warmer in most other places in SoCal but in Ventura we were treated to low 70s, ocean breezes and a beautiful sunset. Kindof how it always is at Olivas Links in the Summer afternoons. I posted one photo here on the course page from the round to showcase how special late afternoon play is here. More photos posted in the outing recap link above.

Playing conditions got straight 8s across the board for me which is rare for me to do but everything was in very good to mostly great shape. They did a super friendly job hosting us with great service. They had a bathroom repair for the mens restroom which they quickly replaced with quality porta potties. Mary was super handling the Beverage Cart service. The whole team at Olivas Links delivered from booking to executing day of. Love these small yearly GK Plays outings we do here and can't wait for next year. Fantastic Course, GKers and Awesome Sponsors Linksoul, GolfMoose and OnCore Golf balls. Book It!

Late getting to this review.

Ran a Golf Moose / GK Private Course outing on Monday the 20th last week. Before I get into the golf course, from an outing organizer perspective, The Oaks at Valencia has an outstanding staging area to put on an event at. With a huge driving range, practice putting green, clubhouse, snack bar and cart staging area smack in the middle of it, it was exceptionally easy to keep track of all the players providing them an excellent/convenient way to start their day. The staff was very professional/helpful with bag drop/check-in/set-up. The clubhouse is gorgeous with a nice large parking. Loved it.

As for the golf course experience, besides having a blast with GKers GDR23, mark_6m and briggslaw, I found the track very fun and challenging. It’s a Mark O’Meara design which gets some flack due to some blind tee shots and a ruthlessly difficult hole 14 Par 5 where you have to lay up off the tee then hit two difficult shots around oak trees to reach the green in regulation … but the truth is the golf course as a whole, especially the green complexes, is very fun and beautiful. It does not take long to understand why it’s called The “Oaks” as just about every hole blends the hillsides and oak trees in wide varieties. It’s truly unique layout molded very well into the landscape.

Playing conditions were excellent with exception to the bunkers which need new sand. The greens were smooth, mostly firm, and medium speed. Fairways lush full coverage bermuda turf. Rough mostly lush and not very penalizing. Tee boxes in great shape, level and well groomed.

The Oaks at Valencia is a club I’d love to do another outing at and recommend it to anyone considering a membership or has a chance to play.

Check out the photos I posted!

Good Times.

Teed it up with mark_6m and rgm2525 at Canyon Gate CC as part of the Golf Moose / Greenskeeper.org Private Course outing and had a super time. Loved the GKer company and enjoyed this very fun/challenging private course. It’s part of ClubCorp so if you are a ClubCorp member and come to Vegas find a way to play it. It will be well worth your time. You’ll love this pretty Ted Robinson designed course with all the fountains, waterfalls, multi-tier greens and even a golf cart bridge that goes over the main entrance to this gated community. The clubhouse although not huge has a grand feel and a beautiful Spanish design. Check out the photos I just posted.

As far as running an event, next time a shotgun start for sure, lol, but the staff was super … especially the outside services which is key. The staging area is setup excellent for hosting events. Clubhouse, Range, Practice Putting, Practice Chipping/Sand are all together making keeping track of your group easy.

Canyon Gate CC overseeds and as such I impressed how well it had already transitioned to its summer turf. Tee boxes, fairways and rough were all mostly lush with only a few brown areas. Bunkers in excellent shape with quality sand and well groomed. Greens were the highlight. Smooth, slower than they looked (thinking about 9 on the stimpmeter) yet holding shots and a pleasure to putt on.

We saw a bunch of members passing by our check-in table and I have to say they were very friendly and far from snobby. If I lived in Vegas and was in the market for a private club I’d certainly consider Canyon Gate CC.

HUGE thanks to rgm2525 for helping with check-in as I quickly found out a 71 player tee times outing is much more work than a 120 player shotgun.

This was a big success and I’ll be working on another Sunday GK Plays / Monday Golf Moose-GK Private Course outing date for this Fall.

Thank you to all the GKers that came out.

Such a blast on Sunday playing with abbacat, mark_6m and rgm2525 at our GK Plays Bali Hai. Just 11 of us at the outing but no way that cut into our fun. Golf course was in great shape, service fantastic and friendly. Can’t top the atmosphere if you’re looking for a fun VEGAS golf experience. It’s a unique golf experience hard to find anywhere else I hope never changes. I definitely want to do another outing at Bali Hai GC next year and recommend it to other group organizers.

Greens rolling well, recent pin size holes for venting that did not affect putts, holding shots and guessing about 10 on the stimpmeter. Fairways full coverage, bermunda, they stopped overseeding a couple years ago which has allowed a bermunda base to now establish itself. Rough was mostly lush bermunda and a little longer than the fairways. Tee boxes in great shape, lush, large and level but a little shaggy. Bunkers in great shape with a heavier white sand to withstand the wind better. They were consistent and a pleasure to play from.

Check out the photos I posted and expect a full recap of our outing today or tomorrow.

Thank you again to everyone that came. I know the EDC festival that ran until early Monday morning made room rates challenging. GKers are the best!

Little over a week later after my last review and the golf course remains in excellent shape. It was a great Golf Moose / GK Private Course event out there on Monday. Wood Ranch Golf Club treated us wonderful and was happy to host us. They do a super job staging outings on a terrific beautiful layout (check out the photos). Played this time in the outing because I can’t get enough of this track. Super time with GKer Kyle (kmersola). It’s very fun and well maintained. Challenging fast greens with warm weather lush turf. Play it any chance you get or consider joining it if you’ll shopping for CC memberships.

Thank you blakej824 for your invite to join your foursome Wednesday. Great time with Blake, Allan and Ron. Wood Ranch GC has become my second favorite course to play in Ventura County only behind The Saticoy Club. This is such a FUN challenging beautiful Ted Robinson design. It’s in fantastic shape right now. Everyone playing in the coming Golf Moose/GK Private Course Outing Monday 5/16 is going to love it. Greens running fast and smooth. Fairways lush full coverage bermada turf with a pretty cross cut. Rough is a mix of cut low bermuda and kikuyu lush and cut low (however is might be higher come Monday given they are doing their Founder Cup qualifiers Saturday/Sunday before). Tee boxes level lush in great shape. Bunkers in good shape with quality sand. Awesome practice putting green and range. This is course is a must play. Check out the photos I just posted. Highly Recommended.